Tag: Author Interview

Brandy’s love of reading and writing started from a young age. Brandy Greeley entered her short stories and poems into several writing competitions and county fairs, and though she knew her dream was to be an author, she didn’t seriously consider it until she graduated university. After Midnight is her first published novel.

City Lights Press: You started writing with short stories and poems, are these things you still write?

Brandy Greeley: I try to as much as I can. I’ve always loved the freedom creating poems gives me; the breadth of emotion and abundance of life experiences available for me to shape into something uniquely mine is a wonderful feeling, so I attempt to push myself daily to get a poem or two down on paper, even if they’re short. It’s flexing the poetry muscle, so to speak. Same applies with short stories. My parents love to tell me that I’m a wonderful story starter, but I sometimes have issues with the endings and because of this, I’ve written quite a few short stories over the past couple of years, all centered around things happening in my life, with friends of mine and even a couple related to my pet sitting business! I don’t see myself slowing down with either genre anytime soon.

CLP: Have you always loved Fantasy?

BG: Yes, I have! I’m not ashamed to admit that when I was younger, I had a couple of imaginary friends that I’d go on fantastic adventures with. My cats became my sidekicks, and I’d build blanket forts and pretend that I’m hiding from monsters or dragons. As an adult I still do that only now, it’s called ‘research’ for characters and worlds in future novels. There’s something liberating about fantasy because it allows you to escape everyday life to something more magical, youthful and hopeful, and I think that’s crucial, especially considering what’s happening in the world right now. A single fantasy novel lifts my spirits tremendously.

CLP: What’s your favorite book?

BG: I have a couple in mind, but the one that sticks out the most is A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J Maas. I probably read it once or twice a week at least.

CLP: What are you currently reading?

BG: I bounce around between A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J Maas, Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead and Trickster’s Choice by Tamora Pierce. Which one I choose really depends on my mood at the end of the day.

CLP: Does anyone in your family read what you write? How do they feel about it?

BG: I’ve given my parents snippets of my work over the years, but I’m picky and selective because I know that what I produce typically isn’t in their genre of choice. Having said that, they always have both positive and constructive feedback to give me, which helps me grow as an author. After Midnight was the first finished book I’ve ever let them read, and the results were both happy and surprising, because I didn’t think they’d care for it, but they did! I thought they’d read it and then be like ‘that’s nice’ because I’m their daughter, but they both devoured it. My husband, Todd, is one of my at-home editors, but even he doesn’t see much of what I write. I’m a private person when it comes to my stories because they’re a part of me, so if someone in my family is reading it, it means I’ve done all I can to it, and are happy with the result.

CLP: What inspired After Midnight and the character Persephone?

BG: My inspiration for After Midnight actually came from another novel I was writing at the time about a demon named Gabriel who kidnaps a woman, convinced that she’s his long-lost love. I honestly didn’t have enough material to keep the story going in a way that would make sense to readers until I realized that my story closely matched that of the Greek myth of Hades & Persephone. I immediately went to the nearest bookstore and picked up Percy Jackson’s Greek Gods guide, which I read front to back and back again. I’d always been fascinated by that particular myth, and it’s possible that’s what my mind was trying to direct me towards all along, but once I fit together the pieces of what I already had written with the myth itself, something truly magical emerged.
I jumped into Persephone’s shoes as I was planning the outline and tried to create a more fleshed-out version of the goddess herself. How did she feel about marrying her uncle? Did she have a backstory with him before they were married, and if so, what would that look like? How could I interpret her story in modern times?
Over the course of answering these questions, I found Persephone’s voice, which closely matched my own thoughts and feelings. My husband says ‘well, she’s YOU’ and I don’t think that’s very far off the mark.

CLP: Did you have a “moment” where you realized you HAD to write After Midnight?

BG: When I couldn’t get the story of Hades & Persephone out of my head, that was the first sign that I needed to write it, but my own version of it, one that didn’t yet exist. I started to have dreams about the characters with full dialogue and scenes, so after the most vivid one, I woke up that morning and began work on the novel.

CLP: Do you think as a writer you see the world differently because you’re always thinking about how situations could play out in stories?

BG: There’s a great quote I read recently: “Never piss off an author. They’ll write you into their stories and then kill you off.” Truth is, I’m constantly talking to my characters, even when I’m in public spaces, and continually listening in to other people’s conversations for dialogue inspiration so, for those reasons, I do think I tend to see the world through a different lens than most people around me. Every conversation, situation and experience is inspiration and potential plot for me.

CLP: Most importantly, I know you have two small dogs, what breeds are they?

BG: Winnie (8 years old) is a Yorkie Maltese mix and Bailey (6 years old) is a…ready for it? Yorkie-Poodle-Chihuahua-Cocker-Spaniel-Weiner!

CLP: What can we expect from you next?

BG: I’m currently working on a sequel to After Midnight, a book of poems, a Dracula re-telling and a sequel to The Phantom of the Opera, to name a few, so there’s a lot of nifty stuff coming in the future, and I’m so excited to be working on all of it! My first kid is due late August, so I have this sort of self-imposed time crunch to get as much under my belt and headed towards potential publication as I can before my world becomes all about diapers and half-awake writing sessions between cat naps.

City Lights Press: Did you always know you wanted to write?

Samantha Adkins: I have been writing for as long as I can remember. I don’t think I considered it a career until grade 5 when we wrote an autobiography as a school assignment. That’s when I decided to be a writer.

CLP: Between having two children and being a teacher when do you find the time to write?

SA: I started writing more seriously after my daughter was born. I needed some adult time, so when she would nap, I would write. Now that my kids are older, our days are less predictable, so I fit it in whenever I can. Even fifteen minutes is better than nothing.

CLP: Do your friends and family ever read your books? What do they think?

SA: My parents and sister are usually my first readers. They are always supportive, but also offer good suggestions. My parents have a much better understanding of grammar than I do! I also have some good writer friends who read parts or all of my books and give me great feedback.

CLP: What’s your favorite book?

SA: I have a lot of favorite books! As a teenager, Tiger Eyes by Judy Blume was my favorite. Jane Austen’s books became a passion as an adult. I also love murder mysteries – Louise Penny’s series is my current favorite.

CLP: What do you spend more time on, plotting or the actual writing?

SA: Definitely writing. Plotting comes to me when I go for a walk, do dishes or vacuum the floor. It’s not usually a conscious effort.

SA: That is a tough one! Originally, it was Pride and Prejudice, but as I reread her novels and retell them, I am more and more impressed with Emma and Persuasion. I don’t think I can choose!

CLP: Besides the obvious, what inspired you to write the Jane Austen inspired novels?

SA: I wrote Expectations as a birthday present for my sister, who loves Pride and Prejudice. PBS was showing all of the Austen TV versions as well as some interviews and it seemed like most Austen fans wished she had written more. I thought I’d write a short sequel for my sister. It was too enjoyable to stop and it turned into a novel.

CLP: Since these novels are based on such classics are you nervous about the feedback you might receive?

SA: I was certainly nervous about the Austen books. There are people who study her work their whole lives. At some point I had to say, “I know I’ll make mistakes, but hopefully people will be gracious.” I read as much as I could and later joined the Jane Austen Society chapter closest to where I lived at the time. It’s amazing how much information there is about Austen and the regency times. I’ll never learn it all.

CLP: Which of your books has been your biggest labor of love thus far?

SA: All of my books come out of love. Expectations gave me the most joy to write. Other books have been more difficult, though still very enjoyable. I find, as I get older, it is more difficult to keep details in mind. I write myself more notes to remember names, places, and other details.

CLP: Are you working on anything right now?

SA: Yes, I am working on a novel inspired by my Grandmother teaching in a one-room school house during the Depression. I am letting it rest for a bit and am working on another Jane Austen-inspired piece as a bit of a “break”. It was also supposed to be a short story, but is getting longer. . .

A recent college graduate, City Lights Press is excited to welcome new author, Brendan Walsh. From the age of 13 he knew he wanted to write, but finally began constructing his first novel, The Raven Gang, in college. If he can’t make a full-time career out of novel-writing, Brendan Walsh hopes to get a job at DC Comics as a writer or an editor, or at least something creative enough so he doesn’t have to turn his brain off its story-juices.

City Lights Press: When did you know you wanted to write?

Brendan Walsh: I think it was when I was 13. I would consistently make up stories in my head, but I would always keep them to myself. The funny thing is, I didn’t really become an avid reader until I was 16, but I knew I wanted to be a storyteller even before then. I think I was a late-bloomer in that way because I was still afraid of having a voice or sharing my ideas. But when I finally did, I think the story-juices just poured out the gate!

CLP: I know you just recently graduated, what are you currently doing as a day job?

BW: That’s a good question, haha. I recently finished working a seasonal position at Glendale Galleria near my house, so right now I’m not working. My degree was in English, so I hope to soon get some kind of editing job, or something that involves my creative writing abilities, if I’m lucky enough.

CLP: What inspired you to write The Raven Gang?

BW: It goes back to the time when I was 13. The very first version of the story I thought of came to me in the summer of 2009 when I was an incoming high school freshman. Of course, as I got older, the story matured and got more complex. It wasn’t until my first semester of college when I started taking the story’s construction seriously, and my drive to complete the story was too strong to refuse, even if my grades took a bit of a hit (apologies, professors.)

CLP: Have you always been interested in Fantasy books?

BW: Yes and no. I’ve always loved urban fantasy over alternate world fantasy. I’m way more into Neil Gaiman and Jim Butcher than Lord of the Rings. Though I have tried to get more into alternate world fantasy. I recently finished Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson (which I LOVED) and am currently more than halfway through Eye of the World.

CLP: I know you’re also a big movie fan, what’s the best movie you have seen recently?

BW: Glad you asked! I recently watched Kubrick’s Spartacus for the first time and I’ve just wanted to talk about it constantly. It’s funny because you don’t think about Spartacus when you think of Kubrick. It’s his later work that has the more mainstream attention. Spartacus is definitely my second favorite he directed, because 2001: A Space Odyssey is still my all-time favorite movie, and one of my favorite novels.

CLP: Do your parents or brother ever read your work?

BW: My three biggest beta readers are my brother, Robert, my father, and one of my best friends, Scott. I’ve typically showed Robert and Scott my work after each chapter I write and get their comments. I didn’t show my dad The Raven Gang and Immortale until they were done or nearly done. They’ve all been wonderful supporters, and have always quelled my writing anxieties (thank you all!).

CLP: Do you put any details of your real life into your writing?

BW: It’s definitely there. Some descriptions of Weller College, the fictional college that the characters in The Raven Gang attend, came straight out of Wooster, the college I went to. Besides that, some quirks of the main characters and many of their observations are definitely some of my own.

CLP: As a young author, do you think it’s more difficult to be taken seriously?

BW: Maybe not inherently. I first started querying The Raven Gang to publishers/agents in April 2016, and didn’t have as much success as I wanted. Of course, I had very few credentials (I hadn’t yet published a short story either,) so I’m not surprised how hard it is for a first-timer to get through the publishing doors. With Immortale it was still hard, since The Raven Gang ended up being self-published. I hope that when someone reads my books that they don’t think “I can tell someone in their early twenties wrote this” because I don’t think you can put an age on the ideas and ethics in both stories, but who knows, there have been many successful authors who were published at a younger age than me, so I’m just going to keep writing and writing.

CLP: What is your writing process like? Do you start from page one, make an outline, etc?

BW: It is typically just me sitting down and writing, and any outline I have is only in my head. I’ve gotten some good plot devices by just building off dialogue or a conflict that I hadn’t even planned. I think I try to give the characters as much agency as I can, because when I write I can get so absorbed that I can forget that they don’t exist outside the novel, and lots of coffee or the occasional cocktail helps this as well ;).

CLP: What authors or books most influence your writing?

BW: No one has influenced me more than Neil Gaiman. If it weren’t for Neverwhere, my favorite novel of his, I wouldn’t have come up with the early draft for Immortale. Terry Pratchett and Kurt Vonnegut have been invaluable as well, and I must include Ray Bradbury. The Martian Chronicles and The Illustrated Man have stories that have influence how I think. He had a magical way of doing prose that just worked so perfectly with the lessons each story taught. Every short story I’ve done has been me trying to create to same feeling in readers, and I hope I’ve come at least somewhat close to that goal.

Look for Brendan Walsh’s novels soon!

John Kestner is back again with another hit novel, Yesterday Rules! We got a chance to hear a little more about the novel, which is being coined as a “Sort-of Memoir.”

“Jeff Bailey is turning 40. Settled and happily married, he spends his nights writing unsold screenplays while working security at a remote desert nuclear power plant after 9/11. Surfing the web one night, he sees the name of his first love, Shelley Dawson, pop up on a high school website.

Bailey offers to dig out his journals and take them both back to the summer of 1981 in Ohio. She never knew he kept a detailed journal about his time with her so, uneasy but curious, she allows him into a past she can’t remember to see what he finds.
Surprised by how much he’d forgotten, Bailey returns to the single summer that first broke his heart and made him a stranger to his own life and to the only world he’d ever known. The end of his childhood and the beginning of what his young parents always warned him about: dreaded adulthood. Transcribing his journals to a distant lost love, the adult Bailey follows his doomed teenage self, reliving the discovery and pain as he retraces his first feelings for Shelley, unearthing and unleashing emotions that hold consequences for them both all these years later.”

City Lights Press: What Inspired Yesterday Rules?

John Kestner: What happens in Yesterday Rules inspired Yesterday Rules.

CLP: Did the conversation in your preface actually happen? Has “Loni” read the book?

JK: Yes, it did. Nearly word for word. “Loni” had read the initial manuscript (it started as a short document to a first love) and as it developed into this novel, we talked about it, but she hasn’t seen this final version—which now includes her!

CLP: How did your wife feel about Yesterday Rules?

JK: I think I actually portrayed her response to that situation accurately. If she had any other reaction, she didn’t tell me.

CLP: Jeff Bailey is the same character in your other novel, Vegas Working Girl; is this the same character or just happens to be the same name?

JK: It’s the same guy. As difficult as it might be to imagine someone more naïve and hopeless as the kid who landed in Las Vegas for Vegas Working Girl, you’ll see that he was actually worse while growing up in the Ohio cornfields of Yesterday Rules.

CLP: Did you ever consider adding in Shelley’s point of view and having two narrators?

JK: If I had any understanding of what went on in her head—at least enough to include her point of view—I’m sure our story would’ve been completely different!

CLP: You wouldn’t tell us what actually happened in Vegas Working Girl and what didn’t, what about Yesterday Rules? Can you tell us what parts were fiction or are you keeping it a secret?

JK: For now, I’d rather let the books speak for themselves. Part of the joy of studying literature in college was discovering that most of the great writers I read used their own lives as the inspiration for their greatest works. God knows I’m not putting myself in their class, but I feel like good writing connects the author to a reader when the author is exposed and the reader believes what he or she is saying. “This had to have happened” is one of the highest compliments I could receive from a reader.

CLP: How did you decide on the quotes you used throughout the book?

JK: Growing up in the 70s and 80s, I heard music everywhere. Radio, records, cassette tapes, the beginning of MTV (when they played music videos). As a teenager discovering emotions, I would hear a sentiment expressed vocally and musically in a song that helped articulate my feelings in a way I couldn’t on my own. And all these years later, the songs still touch those nerves and express those feelings. It’s not unusual to tear up in traffic when the right song comes out of nowhere.

CLP: Did you intend for this to be more of a humorous read or more romance?

JK: It started a long, long time ago as a First Romance story, but my own insecurities, stumblings, and losses turned those years into a comedy. I wanted to be honest enough about my own feelings of inferiorities and ridiculousness that perhaps anyone reading it might identify and come to terms with their own feelings of utter absurdity. I might look stupid, but at least I’m honest.

CLP: And last but not least, do you believe in soul mates?

JK: I do. I know couples who were clearly meant for each other, and God bless ‘em. I hope I never give up on believing in such a consuming, meant-to-be love. It hasn’t worked out that way for me…but at least I got a couple of stories out of it.

City Lights Press is excited to welcome best selling author, Shaun Griffiths, to the family! Shaun Griffiths is a British writer, born in South Wales, in a country where storytelling is deeply ingrained in the Welsh culture. After spending too many years travelling, he has now settled with his wife and family, two dogs, and various uninvited rodents, in a house they built in the forests of Poland.

City Lights Press: You’ve done electronic engineering and worked in finance; how did that lead to writing a book?

Shaun Griffiths: Hi Lauren, and thank you for the invitation to this interview. I think my previous careers indirectly led to me writing a novel by showing me what I didn’t want to do with my life.
Sometimes, it’s difficult to know what you do want, so it helps to decide what you don’t want.
Firstly, I need to say that I’m immensely grateful I was given the opportunity to study and gain a qualification. However, I realized quite quickly that working in an electronics environment was never going to make me happy. I always wanted to travel, and felt I would never be able to settle down until I’d been to the places I always dreamed of.

You see, when I was young, I’d cut pictures out of magazines of places that I would love to visit and paste them into a scrap book (like today’s bucket lists). The temple of Borobudur, Neuschwanstein castle, Philae Island all made it into my scrap book. But what pushed me to move was when I saw a Magnum Photo of a young Israeli soldier standing guard in the old city of Jerusalem. Not only was she beautiful and looked so cool in dark glasses, but when you looked closer, you saw an Uzi machine gun slung over her shoulder. I realized, these were scenes I was never going to experience unless I took my life in my own hands. It was something I felt I needed to do when I was young enough (or stupid enough), to try to get to some places that maybe I shouldn’t have – running into a Thai pirate springs to mind.

My other long term career was with Goldman Sachs. It’s the kind of institution that seemed to demand total commitment at the expense of everything else, including my wife and family.

During the banking crisis, my name was added to the list for desk clearing. When I walked out of the door, it felt like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders and I was getting my life back. It brought me closer to my family and gave me the opportunity to again do what I loved doing. So we built a house in Poland, and I started to write.

CLP: Before you wrote your first book did you have a moment when you thought “I have to write this right now?”

SG: I was always a scribbler, writing down ideas for stories, writing letters to pen-pals around the globe (when we used to post letters), or what I thought of as deeply profound insights for a young man! Unfortunately I didn’t hold onto all that stuff, it got lost over the years.

I had felt an itch to write a novel for a few years but I didn’t know where to start or if I’d be able to finish it. It wasn’t until I read a book called The 9 Day Novel, which basically laid out how to write a book in 9 days, that I tried it myself. It took me a lot longer than 9 days – more like 9 weeks, but I did get a first draft completed which gave me an enormous sense of accomplishment.

CLP: You’ve moved around a lot, where is your favorite place you’ve been?

SG: One of my favorite places in the world is Nepal. The natural scenery is breathtaking. Seeing the morning sun on Mount Everest, or being surrounded by the towering peaks in the Annapurna Sanctuary is a humbling experience. But what really stays in my memory is the friendliness of the Nepalese people. It is a dreadfully poor country, but the smiles and helpfulness of the people make the country glow. After my wife and I married, as a way of giving back something to the people, we “Virtually” adopter a young Nepalese girl through Action Aid. Our charity contributions helped to finance her education. It was a way of saying thank you to the people of Nepal.

At the other extreme, I also feel a deep sense of awe in deserts. The nothingness is filled with magic that can affect all your senses. Your hearing becomes tuned to search for the quietest sound until you hear the blood pulsing in your ears.

I have an affirmation that I sometimes repeat. ‘ When all around you is silent, I am the thunder in your ears.’ It may sound weird, but I do believe I was called in the desert. And cold water tastes better than the finest wine after a day’s journey.

CLP: Do you see yourself ever writing in a different genre?

SG: I’ve just completed a short Sci Fi story. It is a little more adult in dialogue, a kind of Pirates of the Universe/Jack Sparrow in space type romp. I really enjoyed trying my hand at this. I may expand it to a series of short adventures if I get some positive reaction from it.

CLP: Do you think writing Young Adult is more difficult than other genres?

SG: I don’t think it is more difficult, I do feel it’s important to remember who your readers are. Once I get into the plot/characterization each day, it does flow quite easily. For the final part of my fantasy trilogy, I knew there would be some serious battles and casualties, so I was conscious of the need to keep the descriptions of violence relevant to the story. I have a writing friend that is an Educationalist and Literacy Consultant, so I put the big battle scene passed her before I published.

I feel it’s important to treat YA readers with respect, as in the themes and language used shouldn’t talk down to anyone, but it’s also important to keep the plot and scenes at a level that is not going to give younger people nightmares. I know from emails I’ve received that people reading my books are adults that love the YA genre as well as younger readers, so for me, it’s important to keep the story line clean. Obviously you can’t have a battle without someone getting killed or injured, but if it’s necessary to drive the story or to shape the characters emotional reactions, then I think it will work.

Something else to bare in mind is that a lot of gatekeepers for YA readers are the parents. These are the people buying your eBooks because they have the credit cards. It’s really important to give the parents confidence that the contents is not going to badly influence younger people.

CLP: You have had a lot of success with your books, were you expecting this to happen?

SG: I never expected to get such positive reviews of my work that I have done. I am always amazed when I read that people have enjoyed and recommend the series.

For me personally, the success of the books is the fact that I have completed the trilogy. When I set out on my writing journey, I told anyone who’d listen that I was going to write a trilogy. It was a way of keeping myself accountable and making sure that I followed through with the project. So for me, the real success is in reaching the finishing line. Now that I know what I can do, I feel so much more confident in taking on the next project.

CLP: Has your wife or children read your books? What do they think about you being an author?

SG: My son proof read an early draft and gave me some valuable feedback on the plot and my daughter helped with an early design of the cover. My family is always encouraging and happy to share my successes when things go right. When it goes wrong, I tend to keep it to myself. They have told some of their friends that my books have become best sellers, so I guess they must be a little impressed.

CLP: Do you put any parts of your real life into your fantasy books?

SG: My fantasy world is a conglomeration of the world around me and my memories of places I’ve visited. For instance, the forests and grasslands that I describe are outside my front door. The mountains and storms are taken from my memories of the Himalayas. The desert I try to describe you’ll find in the Sinai. The lost city has a lot of Rome in it. The best way for me to describe a scene is for me to re-live it. I have to leave the alien world building to the real experts.

CLP: What’s an average day look like for you?

SG: I don’t think I have an average day. My responsibilities to my family come first, and after that, I write when I can, or deal with the other jobs that go hand in hand with writing. Answering emails, Social Media, publishing and marketing, all these have to be dealt with. But my favorite job is writing.

CLP: Can you give us a glimpse at what your writing space looks like?

SG: The table where I write is in front of a window that looks out over a pine forest. Part of our garden is in a National Park. When I’m writing, I often catch myself watching the massive pines swaying in the wind – sometimes they bend so far over, I wonder how they ever come back up. The wildlife is unaware that I’m watching them. We’ve had deer eating my wife’s prized blooms, wild boar ripping through the fence, and mink rearranging our roof. I do love to watch the red squirrels – they are beautiful creatures. Some people would call this procrastinating, I think of it as looking for inspiration. As for the desk itself, I know where everything is, but no-one else would find anything.

Thanks for this opportunity, Lauren – it’s been fun thinking about your questions.

Hannah Godard

Hannah Godard was born and raised in the small town of Cochrane, Alberta where she is currently in her senior year of high school. She started writing the Quantum Series in Grade 10 and grew with her characters. Hannah is an adrenaline junkie, fascinated by air planes, and dreams of being a screenplay writer one day.

Social Graces, book 3 of the Quantum Series, is now available! Learn more here and get your copy today!

City Lights Press: Social Graces is the third book in the Quantum series, can you tell us a little about how Clara has grown?

Hannah Godard: For me writing this series has basically been my High School. I started writing this when I was in Grade 10 and I finished it at the end of Grade 11, with some edits here and there. Those are some pretty crucial years to a teenager and I feel like as I mature and grow, Clara has done the same. She started out innocent, knowing she could have power and confidence but for a lot of the first book she faked it. In the third book, however, she takes control and uses the trust that people place in her, that she failed to see the extent of in the first book, to work towards what she wants and what she sees as right. We learn a lot more about Clara, in the second book especially, and I feel like Clara’s views on life have changed as mine have. Honestly, Clara is a reflection of parts of myself. I mean, I’ve never shot a gun before but the ways Clara sees the world and the ways she wants to change it are similar to my ways of thinking and I like that Clara gets to grow with me. I think that makes the story really special.

CLP: I believe you’re just about done with High School, how much longer do you have left? What do you plan to do afterwards?

HG: I’m in the first semester of my senior year at the moment. It’s going by a bit too fast for my liking, honestly. I’ve applied to the Toronto Film School and the University of Toronto for next year, as well as U of C (my local university) and a couple in BC. I really want to keep working towards a writing career but I’m also an honors student in honors Calculus and Advanced English so I have a lot of options available to me. My dream is to write screenplays and I feel like Toronto in the best place in Canada to do so. I’m definitely going to stay here in Canada, though. I don’t really know how I’m going to get there or exactly what I want from life yet but I’m so grateful to have been given the opportunities that I have and to have been exposed to something so big and amazing that I never really knew I was capable of.

CLP: I’ve read that you’re a bit of an adrenaline junky, what’s the last big thing you did?

HG: We went whitewater rafting and cliff jumping this summer which was pretty fun. I can’t swim very well though so anything with water isn’t the smartest but I cliff jump all the time. I can probably stay afloat for at least three minutes before it all starts going down hill.

CLP: Why are you so fascinated by air planes?

HG: We moved to New Zealand when I was eight with my older cousin and he got me hooked on Air Crash Investigation. Ever since then I’ve had the biggest fear of flying in planes, which is weird because I fly planes myself. I’m training towards my Privates Pilots License right now but something about flying in a plane with a hundred other people and someone else being in control scares me. Landing in Calgary is the worst, too, so that doesn’t make it any better. I just think air planes are one of those great feats of man and something about being able to fly always fascinates me. It’s funny because I hate physics with a passion but maybe if we learned more about planes I wouldn’t have dropped that course.

CLP: Do you ever feel like you’re living a double life, one as a normal teenager and one as an author?

HG: Not really. The way our school system works is that the Elementary, Middle, and High School are all within walking distance of each other so I’ve gone to school with the same people for the majority of my life. I started writing pretty young so for the people around me it’s always just been something that, I don’t know, is. I’m the kid that writes the books and nobody really questions it. As for my teachers, everyone has been really helpful with accommodating for times that are busier with my writing by giving my extensions of extra help when I need it. Because of all these people helping me through it, my everyday life and my writing life have kind of just been molded together to form what everyone knows as just my life.

CLP: Do you have the time to enjoy a good book every now and then? What’s the last book you read?

HG: The last book I read was Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss. It was recommended to me by a friend, and I don’t normally read books that my friends recommend because more times than not they’re books about cats or just poorly written in general since I’m basically the only one that even remotely enjoys English out of the bunch of us, but this one was really, really good. I don’t get to read a lot because school has been too much recently, with University applications and everything but we do have this bookshelf full of old books that my dad got as a sort of inheritance. One of the books in there is Andrew Lang’s Green Book and it’s my favorite book in the entire world. It’s just a bunch of short stories but something about it relaxes me. Maybe it’s because it reminds me of my dad.

CLP: “Come to Play” is the slogan for Social Graces, where did that come from?

HG: I’m really good at observing people and their behavior and ever since I’ve gotten good at it I’ve noticed that life is really all about moves and countermoves. Like, if I don’t do my math homework my calc teacher will get mad, but if I don’t go to class then I have time to finish it. That’s a pretty dull example but the whole Quantum series is based off of anticipating moves and figuring out what your next move is going to be. Quantum’s slogan was never play the game too long and John Doe’s slogan was the game plays you. Social Graces is a pivotal novel in the series and it’s one in which Clara really starts to take responsibility and formulate plans for herself and for the team other than just reacting to the moves of others. Come to play vocalizes that point beautifully, stating that if you don’t want to be left behind, you’re going to have to come ready to play.

CLP: Have your friends read your books? How do they feel about you being an author?

HG: My friends are really busy and we all have things we do outside of classes together that make us who we are. My friend Hannah is an amazing, high level dancer and she dances almost every day of the week. Maddie is really into photography and works really hard in classes to keep her marks high. Jessica is an amazing curler and curls almost every weekend and I think their team is something like number one in Alberta which is crazy. Karlee, on the other hand, is the only friend I still have that came with me from Middle School. I’ve known her my entire life and she’s read every book that I’ve written. She also gets characters in each book I write who reflect Karlee’s effect in my life. Lexa is her character in this series. My friends are incredibly supportive of what I do and they’re amazing people on their own. I know they’ll support me in everything that I do and are incredibly proud of me, even if they haven’t read what I’ve written.

John Kestner

City Lights Press is excited to welcome John Kestner to the team! While working at a nuclear power plant, Kestner wrote over 35 feature film screenplays, nearly three-quarters of them winning or placing in int’l and national screenwriting competitions. John Kestner’s first novel, Vegas Working Girl, will be published in December 2017. His second novel, Yesterday Rules, a teen memoir that reveals he may not have been very smart to begin with, will follow in the winter of 2018.

City Lights Press: You’re known more for screenwriting, how did that turn into writing novels?

John Kestner: As a lifelong movie fan, I see storytelling in two different forms: literarily and cinematically. I have stories that are conceived and developed as films, but I have a few that are very personal and need more space and depth than the rigid format of a feature screenplay. Screenwriting is the paint-by-numbers version of art, which doesn’t make it less of an artistic pursuit; it just requires a different type of creativity to make great art. And both require a great story.

CLP: How does writing novels and writing screenplays differ for you?

JK: Screenwriting is projecting your idea through characters onto a screen. Just what they say and do. With the right director, the right actors, and the right budget, the characters as you envision them can come to life. In novel-writing, you’re the producer, the director, the actors, everyone on the film; you’re the show. It’s so much more pressure because you can’t blame anyone else if the story doesn’t work.

CLP: Did you always know you wanted to write?

JK: In a freezing junior high school room during one of the record-setting winters in 1970s Ohio, I was given a stack of “career cards” so I could start thinking about my future. One of the cards said WRITER. The photo was a beautiful Caribbean beach. The card described the jet-setting super successful life of an established writer. I thought, “THIS IS FOR ME!” Someday I will find the person responsible for that card…and I will exact my revenge.

CLP: Vegas Working Girl takes place in Las Vegas during the 80’s, did you spend a lot of time in Vegas during that time?

JK: I’d like to avoid saying what actually happened and what was made-up for this novel. I will say that I was young and went to Las Vegas looking for a story. And I found one.

CLP: What is your favorite genre to read? What are you currently reading?

JK: I love anything that’s well-written. I love nonfiction that reads as intense and compelling as fiction, and I love fiction that hits you with the authenticity of personal experience. You read it and you know someone didn’t just make this up. As far as what I’m reading, I just finished an old college friend’s book about creationism (while reconciling what an insane party animal he was in school), a biography of National Lampoon/Saturday Night Live writer Michael O’Donoghue, and a new book about the lasting legacy of the classic film, Casablanca.

CLP: What does your writing space look like?

JK: I think it looks like a nest. Papers, books, unopened mail, discs, etc. I can swivel in my chair and reach everything I’m working on.

CLP: Do you have anyone in your life that you run your ideas past before you begin writing?

JK: Not really. I have a script consultant named Donie Nelson, a best-selling novelist named Mollie Gregory, and some other good friends who give me invaluable feedback but it’s generally after I’ve written a story. The novels come from a much deeper and personal place than the screenplays, so the decision to write them over and over for decades couldn’t be swayed by anyone’s opinion—and everyone’s been very encouraging all along the way!

CLP: What types of things do you enjoy doing in your free time?

JK: I love to travel. I still love reading and going to the movies. Keeping up with friends and meeting new people. I know this all sounds vague and cliché, but I like to keep moving and listening and participating in real life, in the moment, connecting and finding new characters and stories. Writing is such a solitary devotion but what gives the stories life are the characters and places from my own life.

CLP: Are you currently working on anything?

JK: Absolutely! I always have a half-dozen screenplays in their second or tenth or twentieth drafts. My novels Vegas Working Girl and Yesterday Rules will be published in the coming months, so I’m returning to another project I started thirty years ago. Back when I dropped out of college and moved out west, I wanted to find a job that allowed me to write but might also make good source material, so I ended up working security at a desert nuclear power plant. And I ended up staying there for thirty years. So I’m putting together a novel of what really happened inside a nuke plant in its wild early days. Live a story long enough and it will write itself!

J.D. Morrison has been with City Lights Press since 2017 and his first book, The Way It Really Is, will be out October 11th. After 25 years in his career, Morrison decided to follow his passion and begin writing. He acknowledges the late start to his professional writing career, chalking it up to life experiences that demanded to be endured for proper telling of his stories. Morrison is married to his muse and editor, Jena. Together they have five children and two grandchildren.

City Lights Press: How did you go from a career in engineering to writing?

J.D. Morrison: I met my muse. I’ve had ideas kicking around in my head for years. Jena encouraged me to write them down.

CLP: How did your wife, Jena, become your editor? Is it ever difficult to separate your marriage and working relationship?

JDM: Jena is a former publisher and a current freelance book editor. She is my ideal reader, helping me with content and pace. I’m lucky to have found her. After 14 years of flying solo, I truthfully never thought I would marry again. She’s strong, independent and driven. Perfect for me. We met, got engaged and married in the same year. As a writer, my head is constantly spinning with narrative, dialog and plot twists. She reigns me in and helps me slow down and focus. Jena is the one, most often, to push aside the entanglement of our author-editor relationship when I become obsessed. She says many times, “Right now I don’t want to be your editor. I just want to be your wife.”

CLP: I know you have been through a lot of tragedy in your life and use those experiences in your writing; do you think those tragedies were necessary in order to become the writer you are today?

JDM: Absolutely. We all have a journey. Mine’s been laced with a fair share of loss, depression and suffering. This does not make me unique. Something I’ve always done though, from the time I was a little kid, was absorb the experiences and grow through them. They become part of me. I believe we are each the sum product of our experiences.

CLP: How do you write? Do you start from page one and continue, do you jump around a lot, does it start with an outline?

JDM: I’ve written five books. Each started with a concept, but the writing experience with each of them has been different. One thing I find myself consistently doing is following threads of character development. I have to get to know my characters before I can articulate how they act and what they say. I find character discovery to be a great joy. Sometimes, I don’t even know a character’s name, until they tell me. They each have a back story and occasionally a hidden talent, which may or may not manifest in the story. It just helps me get to know them better. My story telling is at its best when I’m simply channeling the voices already in my head. It’s surreal, and maybe a little weird.

CLP: What do you enjoy doing besides writing? How do you spend your free time?

JDM: I play guitar and I sing, just well enough for late nights at the beach. I walk, hike, run and take spinning classes. Jena is a triathlete, so I’m trying to be an active and healthy partner. I read fiction, non-fiction and the newspaper (whether the latter is fiction or not is suspect). I like games and puzzles. We used to have an ongoing jigsaw puzzle in the living room until we got two kittens. They try to help and they run off with the pieces. Jena and I both like wineries and live music.

CLP: What would you tell your 15-year-old self? What is sacred now that wasn’t then? What is insignificant today that always used to be a priority? What should be released and what should be held?

JDM: My inclination is to respond with something profound, but honestly, if I could go back and tell my 15-year-old self something, I would probably rattle off a short list of stocks to buy at their IPO. My time is more sacred now and I no longer have hair. It used to concern me when my bowl hair cut was too short cover my big ears. Needless to say, middle age has realigned my priorities. What should be released? Guilt. Guilt should be released. Let it go or crush it with a stone. Mercy should be held. Mercy for others and especially mercy for ourselves.

CLP: Do any of your five children read your books? If so, what is their reaction?

JDM: My oldest daughter, my sister and my sister-in-law are beta readers. They’ve been able to watch the quality of my writing craft improve with practice. Their reaction has been overwhelmingly supportive, which I appreciate.

CLP: Your oldest daughter inspired The Way It Really Is, did you run the idea past her before you began writing the novel?

JDM: My daughter and I ruminated over the story arc of The Way It Really Is for years. She introduced me to the music of Lisa Loeb, which spoke to feelings otherwise difficult to express. So yes, Susan has been involved from the earliest drafts. In her own words, “I’m proud of my dad. The Way It Really Is couldn’t have been an easy book to write. I believe he’s captured the essence of the struggle.”

CLP: What do you hope readers take away from The Way It Really Is?

JDM: I envision two kinds of readers: those who are struggling and those who know someone who is struggling. What I hope they take away from the story is validation and the knowledge that they are not alone.

CLP: What can we expect next from you?

JDM: I’ve written a novel, Spirit Animal, based loosely upon the impact my oldest brother’s murder at age 17 had on my family. It’s just a story, pure fiction, but the emotions are there because I lived them. It’s edited and ready for representation. Beyond that, next we’re going to delve into the suspense-horror genre. I’m currently working on a book titled Gary (my own little spin on Stephen King’s Carrie).

Devyn Quinn has been a part of City Lights Press since 2017 and currently has one book released with two coming soon. Two of Quinn’s books have been nominated for the Romantic Times Reviewer’s Choice Award and she won in 2010, for her 2009 erotic romance title, Possession. We are excited to have Quinn as a part of the team!

City Lights Press: How did you get started writing?

Devyn Quinn: I was always a voracious reader as a child and teenager, and my love of reading carried over into wanting to create my own stories to share with others. I started writing in my early 20’s and continued off and on through the years. It is something I have a love/hate affair with. I love writing the books. I hate dealing with the business side. I just want to deal with the creative side, and leave the marketing to someone else! Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way and I have had to learn to be my own marketing and sales director.

CLP: Do you have a specific writing area? What does it look like?

DQ: I used to have a dedicated office space in my own place, but since I had to move into my parent’s house to help care for an ageing parent, I have been downsized to a tiny corner in a tiny room. Basically, my view is a wall, with a bulletin board hung on it. Not very inspiring, but since I am looking at the computer screen, I guess it doesn’t matter what is around me. After all, I am more focused on the stage in my mind than I am on my surroundings.

CLP: Do your characters come to you in full form or in bits and pieces?

DQ: Some come out in all their glory. Others take a lot of coaxing to reveal their secrets. When I started writing the Keepers of Eternity series almost 25 years ago, I knew Morgan was an immortal. I didn’t know he was also a god to be, had a wife, a twin sister, and so many other things that seem to reveal themselves with each new book! I think part of that is that he has so many facets of a deeply fractured psyche; peeling off each layer of his character takes him one step closer to his final destination.

CLP: Do you think you come across different challenges writing erotic books that authors of other genres don’t experience?

DQ: Writing in the erotic genre is a whole different ballgame because you have to work the sex scenes in without taking away from the core development of the characters and the story they are trying to tell. You can’t just throw in sex and hope readers go along with it. There has to be a reason for it, or you’re just wasting words and readers are flipping through trying to reach the end. They say if you take the sex out of erotica and still have a well plotted book then you did it wrong. The sex must drive the plot, or it won’t work.

CLP: Do you think as a writer you see the world differently because you’re always thinking about how situations could play out in stories?

DQ: I have a certain amount of detachment from people because I am always watching them and how they act. I can be in a crowd of people, but not engaged with them because I am observing their behaviors.

CLP: Is there a genre you want to try out writing one day?

DQ: I would love to try my hand at a mystery/thriller type novel. I have an idea, but I am not sure I have what it takes to pull it off!

CLP: What type of books do you read?

DQ: I don’t read fiction at all. I prefer biography or history.

CLP: What’s the best advice about writing you’ve ever received?

DQ: Get a day job because 99 percent of writers can’t make a living at it. Because I have a regular income, I am not biting nails over having to produce a certain number of books or reach a certain number of sales to make a royalty check that probably won’t be enough to pay the bills. That security means I can write what inspires me, and not what is popular on the market now. Those trends change anyway, and the genre that was unpopular yesterday might be the hottest one tomorrow.

CLP: Besides writing, what are some hobbies you have?

DQ: I collect and ride motorcycles. My passion is speed and my newest acquisition is a classic 2001 Ninja ZX-12R. So far, I have gotten it up to 145. My goal is to get her up to her full 197 MPH.

CLP: Who are your biggest supporters? Do they read your books?

DQ: Usually writers answer that their families are their biggest supporters. In my case, this is not true. My family could care less that I am a published author, and their support has been lackluster, to say the least. For most of them, it is a trial to read my books and they simply don’t. So, with family out I guess that leaves my readers. Luckily, they are a loyal bunch and have stuck with me for many years. I hope they will stay around and see what else I have in store for them. It’s about to get…interesting.

An Interview With Margaret Cioffi

Margaret Cioffi has been with City Lights Press since 2017. She currently has one book released, My Summer Job, with the second book, The Disappearing Daughter, to be released June 14th. Margaret spends her free time writing, cooking, painting and hanging out with her husband and her family although not all at the same time.

City Lights Press: How did you go from advertising and marketing to novelist?

Margaret Cioffi: Writing a book was always something I wanted to do. I was used to writing 30 seconds of copy for TV and radio as well as headlines and body copy not an eighty to hundred-thousand-word book. The idea of writing a book was daunting. One day, for reasons I still don’t understand, I began to write and write and write. I have never looked back.

CLP: Who are your writing role models?

MC: P.D. James is one writer I have always loved. I enjoy detective and mysteries so her as a choice was easy. I enjoy her uncomplicated, elegant style. All of her books are beautifully developed and entertaining. There are so many writers I marvel at. Way too many to list. Writing a book is a tough thing to do so I applaud anyone who has managed it.

CLP: What is your writing routine like?

MC: I write every day. I can’t imagine not writing every day. I consider writing a job and am very delighted to have such a job.

CLP: Do you have any rituals when you first start writing a book?

MC: When I start a book I write like crazy and get all the good and bad ideas out of my system and into some sort of strange order on a page. I am so excited at the prospect of a new story that ideas and often silliness come pouring out. Once I am my finished my first draft and ready for a read through and review I see the good and the simply awful bits that I have written and do the appropriate cull. I sometimes read the really bad stuff and wonder if someone else could have written those bits. Perhaps they snuck into my home in the middle of the night and filled my pages with paragraphs of ridiculous.

CLP: Do your characters come to you in full form or in bits and pieces?

MC: All my characters are developed at the start of a new book. Some of the things they say and do perhaps not immediately but the idea of them comes right away. Comedic, silly or outrageous characters in particular come to me instantly. You have to wonder what kind of action goes on in my head? The things they get up to grow as I write. However, I must admit I am now able to see where I have gotten carried away with a character. Perhaps taken them a tad too far into the world of silly.

CLP: What are some challenges you come across when writing YA versus if you were writing for any other age group?

MC: Young Adult can be a bit challenging no doubt about it. You have to adopt a youthful voice and talk to yourself whilst writing (talking to oneself works for me but may not work for all). Keeping up with lingo, attitude and current trends is very important when writing Young Adult. You have to remember exactly what your YA days were like. The loves the hates and the depth you felt for each love and hate.

CLP: If My Summer Job was to become a movie who would you want to play the character of Siobhan Murphy?

MC: First of all, if it was to become a movie I would be totally chuffed as in over the moon with total excitement.
I would most likely want a complete unknown to play Siobhan. Someone fresh and new. However, I do like Ellen Paige, although older, has a very young appearance. She can play a smart aleck, and be cheeky and funny all at once. Whomever plays Siobhan would need to look less than perfect with an overload of personality, freckles and red curly hair.

CLP: What’s the worst advice you’ve ever received?

MC: It probably wasn’t bad advice just not the right advice for me. I was advised to write an outline of the book and each chapter before beginning any book. So not me. The excitement of seeing where the story goes would disappear for me and in its place a structured story without my surprise and curiosity anywhere.

CLP: On a more positive note, what advice would you give to young writers?

MC: Read as many books as you can. Mysteries, romance, women’s books, detective stories, Young Adult, comedy books. If it has more than ten pages, read it. Not only is reading a most enjoyable and incredible thing to do but it will also help you to develop your own style. The voices and styles of other authors of will help lead you to your own voice and style.

CLP: The next Siobhan Murphy Mystery book, The Disappearing Daughter, comes out June 14th, what can readers expect from that?

MC: Siobhan is still working for Natasha, still going to school, still hanging out with Marcy. Ever since boss Natasha opened up her event planning company Siobhan has had a blast working part-time. Between dressing as Smurfette for a child’s party and serving high to a lady’s book club Siobhan loves working for Natasha. When Siobhan finds out that Natasha has an adopted daughter, Lenore who has disappeared her and Marcy swing into sleuthing action. Although Natasha hasn’t much of a relationship with her daughter, thanks to her ex-husband, she still keeps tabs on her. In The Disappearing Daughter Siobhan and Marcy help Natasha search for her daughter all over New York and all the way to London England. Yes, London! There’s all kinds of mayhem, intrigue and silly on both sides of the Atlantic.

Get your copy of My Summer Job here, and keep your eyes out for The Disappearing Daughter on June 14th!